Controllable charge and discharge device



May 9, 1950 s. SHAFER, JR

CONTROLLABLE CHARGE AND DISCHARGE DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 10, 1946 INVENTOR.

. I ATTORNEY May 9, 1950 s. SHAFER, JR 2,507,275

CONTROLLABLE CHARGE AND DISCHARGE DEVICE Filed April 10, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 33; SAMUEL 5mm? JR, deceased p 32 INVENTOR.

LJLU P. SHAFER, fxc'cuzr/x 36 I ATTORNEY Patented May 9, 1950 UNITED STATES; FATENT Q QEQLLABLE. CH E-AND D SC R E. DEVICE."

7. Claims... (01. 2599161 This invention relates to apparatus for control -s lingthe charging and discl-iarging functions of rotatable receptacles: such-as are usedfor mixing purposes in truck-mounted concrete mixers.

Reference may be had tozprior U. S. Patent No. 2;285,685'issued June 9 19.412 to Samuel'Shaf-er; Jn, in which there is disclosed. improved apparatus which may be usedboth toefiectuate charging and discharging operations of a mixing drum. The present invention provides additional eles ments-for use in combination, with apparatus. of the type-shown in the aforesaid patent; whereby the charging and/or discharging functions may be better controlled, and less spillage of concrete or other material will result; during; the period of use.

It is. a primary object. ofi this-inventionto pro; videimproved closure or'gate-means foroontrol ling the degree of opening of a movablev charg ing and discharging element; communicating with an opening in the mixing receptacle.

A further object; ofthe inventionv is to provide control instrumentalities for operating the-gate means such that the chargingmember may be shifted from; charging-to discharging position without interference from the control instru: mentalities.

Still another objectis to provide an interlocl; which will: prevent operation; of the control. instrumentalitiesexcept when thecharging means isin proper position for gate actuation.

Thegate means provided. by this inyention are particularly'useful'with receptacles for hauling, or mixing-in-transit, concrete aggregates, for once the batch is mixedin the receptacle, a change of atmosphere in the-r cep acle s preven ed and.

thisisa. factonunder some conditions, of DT'QSQIY-r ing desirable concrete characteristics.

' In accomplishing the obJ'QQtS. hcreinbeiore' set forth, the invention provides-simple but efficient mechanism so arranged that the parts may be operated without endangering the safety of the operiator who controlsthem-.;

Means suitable for accomplishing the objects of? theinventionarerdeseribed-in detail in the following description to which; reference. is now made. and to, he ace z pany ne d w l u tratin mbod ment: er th rawfl li Fig; 1; isv a side, elevation ofthe rear portion of atruc rmo n ed, co c m x rs:-

H s. is. an nd vi w fthe m xer sh wn. n

ig-1 .sidee e at o part ynaction. he

-'I various; positions thatythe hopper occupies.

member in downward or dischargin pos t o Fig. 4. is a perspective view of the operating mechanism engaged with the hopper-gate; and- Fig.v 52 is an enlarged end view showing the op.v crating mechanism engaged with thehopp t the drawings, the mixer drum, or receptacle 1 l is mountedfor rotation in a frame l-2, with the axis of the drum preferably inclined in order that the axial opening at oneend of theydrum; may be at a high location for receiving. andadischarging materials. Reference maybe had to U; S. Patent No. 2,303,902'issued December 1', 1942, to Charles 1?: Ball; for a, more complete disclosure. of the type of drum with. which the present invention may be utilized;

Mounted on the end; of-thev drum and:surround-. ingthe aforesaid opening isa charging hopper l3 of" generally. funnel-shape which is heldv against the drum by a spring I4 which engagesnthe back of the hopper and is tensioned by a flangedrod; l5 extending through the, spring. The rod I5 is firmlyv secured in, the drum and extends axially thereof so as. to exert; balanced tension through the springagainst the back, of the hopper in the Normally this tension is'sufficient to cause the hopper to. rotate; with the drum unless, such rotation is prevented by means. such as are herein described.

The hopper is actually supported on the end of the. drum and to accomplish this, the annular, inner end [6 of the hopper is provided with a flange I! which is journalled on a rim extending from; theend of the drum opening. As this construction-is shown in detail in aforesaid Patent No. 2-,2B5;68.5, its description will not be repeated here, but it should'be pointed out that abearing and'sealis maintained; between the end of the drum and the inner end ofthe hopper, which permits; While sealing, relative rotation between the hopper and theidrum.

In Figs. 1, 2 and 4, the hopper is shown in upright position with its outer end l8; above; the drum opening.- The outer opening is closed by a curved gate l9 arranged to conformto the con;- tour of and fit snugly; against the curved side walls of the hoppeli; the; gate is normally held in closed position by springs 23, one on each side, wh ch are secured at one. ndtoars-2;! ex e ng from thesides 22 0f the gate and at their other ends to; the sides of. the flange E1 on. the inner end of thehopper; When the gate is. op ned, exc s nsthe ter as f he mat. al may e. ch sfi r h sh. e h er: ntqthe 1 .7 .1 1.11 U.

Secured to ends the side 54; of; the ate I! are trunnions 23 journalled at either side of the hopper. These trunnions are aligned axially and intersect an extension of the drum axis through the hopper. The trunnions are squared at their ends for engagement by actuating means subsequently described.

The flange I1 is provided with two rims 24 and 25, and rim 24 is notched at two places, 180 apart on the circumference thereof, whereby the hopper may be locked against rotation by a spring actuated detent 26 (see Fig. 2). As shown in Fig. 2, the hopper is upright, but on retraction of the detent, the hopper will revolve with the revolving drum until it has assumed the downward position shown in Fig. 3, at which time the detent will snap into a notch 180 removed from that shown in Fig. 2. There the hopper will remain until the detent is released, whereupon the hopper will return to its original charging positon.

To actuate the gate I9, a socket member 21 having a recessed configuration corresponding to the ends of the trunnions 23 is mounted on a bracket 28 secured to one of the rear uprights of the frame |2 The socket 2'! is journalled for axial movement in its supporting bracket 28 and is in line with the trunnions 23 which extend from the gate IS. A spring 28 normally keeps the socket 21 removed from the trunnions, but by pressing on the hand wheel 29 secured to the end of the axle of the socket member, the socket may be brought into engagement with the trunnion disposed opposite it, whereupon by turning the hand wheel, the gate I9 may be moved to any desired position permitting charging or discharging through the outer hopper opening l8.

The spring 28 normally maintains the socket 21 in retracted position where it is sufliciently removed from the hopper and gate so that it will not interfere with the rotation of the hopper between the two positions in which it is locked, but to prevent inadvertent operation of the socket 21 when the hopper is not held stationary, an interlock is provided, comprising a follower arm 30 carrying a roller 3| which rides on the rim 25 at the inner end of the hopper. The arm 30 is part of a bell crank journalled on the frame, the other arm 32 of which is secured to a latch arm 33 having a keyhole slot 34 at one end, which can be brought into engagement with a notched portion 35 on the shaft that carries the socket 21.

A spring 36 disposed between the frame I and a bracket extending from the arm 32 tends to lift the narrow portion of the slot 34 out of engagement with the notch 35, and this position is maintained so long as the roller 3| is disposed in the recessed portion 31 of the rim 25. When the detent 26 is retracted, permitting the hopper to rotate with the drum, the roller 3| is forced outwardly by the rim 25, the pressure of the spring 36 is overcome, and the narrow portion of the keyhole slot 34 is moved into the notch in the shaft of the socket 31. It is then impossible to press the socket toward the hopper, and the hopper may continue its rotation without interference until it has reached a position substantially 180 from that which it formerly occupied. In the latter position, the roller 3| will encounter another recessed portion in the rim 25, similar to the recess 37 shown in Fig. 4, and the spring 36 will lift the latch arm 33, bringing the larger part of the slot 34 into registry with the socket axle, thereby permitting axial movement of the socket 21. Since there are two trunnions 23, serving as engagement means for the gate actuating means, with one trunnion extending from each side of the hopper, the gate |9 can be operated when the hopper is in either upward, charging position, or when it is in downward, discharging position.

Springs 20 normally keep the gate in closed position; thus when concrete is in the drum, it may reach a level well above the bottom of the drum opening, which the hopper encloses, and the hopper may be rotated from charging to discharging position with no spillage to the side as the hopper rotates. The receiving chute such as is customarily employed may be placed directly below the position of the opening l8 when the hopper is disposed to discharge, and the rate of discharge can be controlled by the degree of opening of the gate. The only discharge which will occur is directed downward through the opening which the gate provides, and extensive receiving means on either side of the hopper are thereby eliminated.

Because of the provision of operating mechanism for the gate, such as described, which is mounted in a fixed position on the frame of the mixer and is disengageable from the hopper during movements of the latter, the operator is protected against the hazard of operating parts which might otherwise move while in operation.

The invention having been described, what is claimed is:

1. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a charging hopper arranged so that one end of the hopper may cooperate with said opening, said hopper being movable from a charging position in which the other end is disposed above the receptacle opening to a discharging position in which said other end is below the receptacle opening, whereby materials may pass through said hopper and opening during charging and discharging operations respectively, a gate movable with the hopper for controlling the passage of materials through said hopper when in either of said positions, means maintaining said gate closed during movement of the hopper, and means operable when the hopper is stationary to open the gate.

2. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a charging hopper arranged so that one end of the hopper may cooperate with said opening, said hopper being movable from a charging position in which the other end is disposed above the receptacle opening to a discharging position in which said other end is below the receptacle opening, whereby materials may pass through said hopper and opening during charging and discharging operations respectively, a gate for controlling the passage of materials through said hopper when in either of said positions, means normally maintaining said gate in closed position, and means disengageable with the gate, for actuating the same said means being movable to a position to effect operative engagement therewith when the hopper is in either of said positions.

3. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a charging hopper having one end arranged to cooperate with said opening to effect transfer of material therethrough, said hopper being movable from an upward, charging position to a downward, discharging position, a gate mounted for movement to control the opening of the other end of the hopper, disengageable means for operating said gate when said hopper is in either of said positions, and an interlock maintaining the gate operating means out of engagement with the gate during movement of the hopper.

4. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a charging hopper having one end arranged to cooperate with said opening to effect transfer of material therethrough, said hopper being rotatable with the receptacle from an upward charging position to a downward discharging position, means for arresting rotation of the hopper in either of said positions, a gate mounted for movement to control the opening of the other end of the hopper, retractive means arranged to engage the gate when the hopper is in either of said positions, said means when retracted permitting movement of said hopper as aforesaid without interference, and means normally maintaining said retractive means in retracted position during the movement of the hopper to either side of said position.

5. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a hopper having one end arranged to cooperate with said opening to eifect transfer of material therethrough, said hopper being rotatable with said receptacle from an upright, charging position to a downward, discharging position, means controlling rotation of the hopper, a closure pivotally mounted on said hopper arranged to open and close the other end of the hopper, said closure having engagement means arranged at opposite sides of said hopper, and actuating means arranged to be moved to engage one of said engagement means when the hopper is in charging position and the other engagement means when the hopper is in discharging position, whereby the closure may be moved to open and closed positions, said actuating means being retractable to permit rotation of the hopper.

6. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a hopper journalled on said receptacle having one end arranged to cooperate with said opening to effect transfer of material therethrough, said hopper being rotatable with said receptacle from an upright, charging position to a downward, discharging position, means controlling rotation of the hopper, a gate pivotally mounted on said hopper arranged to open and close the other end of the hopper, trunnions extending from said gate at opposite sides of said hopper, actuating means arranged to be moved to engage one of said trunnions when the hopper is in charging position and the other trunnion when the hopper is in discharging position, whereby the gate may be moved to open and closed positions, and yieldable means normally maintaining said actuating means out of engagement with said trunnions and permitting rotation of said hopper.

7. In a concrete mixer having a rotatable mixing receptacle with an axial opening, a hopper journalled on said receptacle having one end arranged to cooperate with said opening to effect transfer of material therethrough, said hopper being rotatable with said receptacle from an upright, charging position to a downward, discharging position, means operable to lock said hopper against rotation when in said positions, a gate pivotally mounted on said hopper arranged to open and close the other end of the hopper, yieldable means urging said gate into closed position, trunnions extending from said gate at opposite sides of said hopper, actuating means arranged to be moved to engage one of said trunnions when the hopper is in charging position and the other trunnion when the hopper is in discharging position, whereby the gate may be moved to open and closed positions, yieldable means normally maintaining said actuating means out of engagement with said trunnions and permitting rotation of said hopper, and means rendering said actuating means operable only when the hopper is in charging or discharging position.

LULU P. SHAFER, Erecutrix of the Estate of Samuel Shafer, Jr.,

Deceased.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,194,355 Bunnell Aug. 15, 1916 2,285,685 Shafer, Jr June 9, 1942 2,308,901 Viall et a1 Jan. 19, 1943 2,316,137 Visser Apr. 6, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 57,216 Sweden Apr. 27, 1923 

